As the arts sector begins to open up again and cautiously return to some kind of normality, it faces another major challenge along with recovery from the pandemic shutdown of the past two years. It must eliminate the behaviour that has given rise to it being identified as a “fertile landscape” for bullying and harassment.
The extent of this behaviour throughout the sector, according to the findings of a survey commissioned by the Irish Theatre Institute, is so widespread that it demands urgent action to deal with what the report authors call a "significant problem". That problem – and the word seems far too mild – is obviously deep rooted, judging by the statistics. That 70 per cent of those surveyed say they have been victims of harmful workplace behaviour is alarming. This is much higher than the national average; a Central Statistics Office survey in 2019 found that 33 per cent of the country's workforce had experienced harassment. That this has so pervasively been part of the arts workplace and for so long raises questions as to why it has taken until now to bring it to public attention.
The revelation that this behaviour has been tolerated and even in some instances regarded as the norm is totally unacceptable. In the age of #MeToo and other anti-harassment movements, it is disappointing to see some respondents citing “artistic temperament” as a possible explanation or excuse. This points to a mindset requiring immediate change. Likewise, the suggestion of a degree of “acquiescence and acceptance” among victims indicates the need for an educational campaign.
It is understandable that fear of blacklisting, a matter of real concern for performers and musicians, has been an obstacle to victims seeking to have their allegations investigated and, if proven, having the perpetrators reprimanded or removed from their positions. The nature of the work, so much of it freelance and in the case of actors peripatetic, makes it even more difficult to deal with issues of abuse.
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A further disadvantage to successfully tackling the concerns raised in the report is the lack of proper reporting channels, a factor that no doubt accounts for the situation going unchallenged for so long. This highlights the need for organisations, big and small, to establish structures in which those with grievances can have confidence. It may well be that the setting up of a single reporting centre is the best and only way forward. While the boards of publicly funded arts organisations cannot on a day-to-day basis police the conduct of those they appoint to positions of power, duty of care to employees requires a zero tolerance policy when it comes to the kind of exploitative conduct that this report suggests is extensive across the arts sector.